Durbsboi
August 29th, 2006, 10:20 AM
Okay I know many of your'll give a crap about English footy but whilst watching the first game of the season at Anfield, the commentator brought something rather interesting to my attention.
The weekend that just past, Anfeilds KOP celebrated its 100th anniversary
And little do we know, that the KOP actualy has alot of meaning to South Africans too! Heres a little history lesson :)
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/3907269.jpg
THE KOP
Kop or Spion Kop is the name for a number of stands at football stadiums in England and abroad, named after the South African mountain Spion Kop, scene of a battle in the Second Boer War where a majority of the Liverpool Regiment had died, hence Liverpool FC calling the home section of the ground the Spion Kop in 1906 in tribute.
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/spion-kop-view.jpg
The definition of what constitutes a Kop is subject to much conjecture. The size and location of the stand in the stadium varies, with most being located behind the goal and being occupied by its club's most vocal supporters. It is usually a single tiered stand and traditionally terraced, however modern stadium design has required many to be made all seated. It is not necessarily the largest stand in the stadium. For example the largest terrace to be used in English football was the East Bank at Charlton Athletic`s stadium 'The Valley' with a capacity of approximately 50,000 stretching along the side of the pitch. This stand was not known as a Kop. However Chesterfield's stadium the Recreation Ground has a Kop with a capacity of only a few thousand. Likewise, Newcastle's most vocal supporters are traditionally said to be in the Gallowgate End, despite it being the smallest stand in the stadium.
The first was at Woolwich Arsenal's Manor Ground[1] and many English grounds have a Kop. The most famous one is at Anfield, home of Liverpool, which is the only club to give their stand the official name of 'The Kop'. Built in 1906 and named 'Spion Kop', it could hold up to 24,000 rabid 'Kopites' (supporters placed in the Kop) however it was not the largest terrace built (behind a goal) at an English ground, that honour belongs to Villa Park's old Holte Endclosely followed by the old South Bank at Molineux, both regularly holding crowds in excess of 30,000. Hillsborough's kop had become the largest roofed terrace (at that time) in Europe, with a capacity of around 25,000. The funding for this work was not only done be the club itself but through the fans, who held a number of money making ventures including a fun run.
The supporters on Liverpool's Kop helped make Anfield famous for its atmosphere, supporters' enthusiasm, and making an intense and fiery match day atmosphere. The name sticks to this day both officially and spiritually, even though the stand itself became all-seater in the 1990s.
'Kopites' is also a collective name given to the loyal supporters of Liverpool Football club.
Source: wikipedia.org
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the world's most famous terrace and to celebrate, Liverpoolfc.tv takes a nostalgic trawl through the archives to recall the magical history of Anfield's Spion Kop...
With attendances at Anfield booming during the 1905/06 Championship-winning campaign, the Liverpool board, led by Chairman John Houlding and Secretary John McKenna, decided to demolish what was known as the Oakfield Road Embankment or Walton Breck Road End and replace it with a huge bank of rubble and cinders that was to become known as the Spion Kop.
The construction steel work for the new terrace was supplied and erected by Messrs E.F. Blakeley & Co of Vauxhall Ironworks. It consisted of 132 tiers of steps and could accommodate approximately 20,000 spectators.
It was the then Sports Editor of the Liverpool Daily Post & Echo, Ernest Edwards, who christened the newly constructed terrace the Spion Kop. It was named after the hill in South Africa where many young soldiers from Liverpool had lost their lives during the Boer War in 1900. On what date it officially became known as the Kop, remains unknown although it was sometime between 1906 and 1928.
The correct pronunciation is 'Spee-on Kop'.
Liverpool was not the first club to be able to boast a Kop - that honour is believed to belong to Woolwich Arsenal - but there's no doubting which one became the most famous.
The first game to be played in front of the Kop took place on September 1 1906. The city was basking in the midst of a heatwave and temperatures reached 94 degrees as Joe Hewitt netted the first goal.
In the Kemlyn Road corner of the Kop stands a flag-pole which was once the topmast of the Great Eastern ship. It had been broken up in Rock Ferry and floated across the Mersey to Liverpool where it was then hauled up Everton Valley by a team of four horses and put in place at Anfield.
Because the new Kop was an open terrace, the view from the back of the terrace was reportedly a sight to behold, especially in the summer when you could see for miles across the city. In the winter, however, it hardly made for comfortable viewing conditions as the wind and rain swept in from the Mersey.
In 1928, the Liverpool directors decided to reward the loyalty of those who stood on the Kop in all weathers by authorising the construction of a roof over the terrace. The cantilever roof measured 45,000 square foot. With a height of 125 feet and a slope measuring 425x131 feet, the Anfield Kop became the largest covered terrace in Europe.
The new roofed structure was officially opened by Football League President and former Anfield visionary John McKenna on August 25 and the Reds marked the occasion with a 3-0 defeat of Bury.
It was reported around this time that the Kop could accommodate up to 37,000 spectators but that figure was never made official and seemed highly unlikely. The Kop was regularly crammed to capacity but never more so than in 1952 when Anfield's all-time record attendance of 61,905 was set for a FA Cup fourth round tie against Wolves.
During the 1930s the Kop played host to various sporting events other than football. It was not uncommon for championship boxing bouts to be held at Anfield and in 1934 local favourite Nel Tarleton famously fought Freddie Miller for the World Featherweight title. Kopites were also treated to thrilling tennis contest between Fred Perry and Bill Tilden, while the Liverpool Marathon often concluded with a final lap in front of the imposing terrace.
It was not until the 1960s that singing became a popular pastime of those who stood on the Kop but, ignited by the passion of Bill Shankly, it quickly became renowned as the most vocal terrace in football. Kopites would belt out the hit Beatles records of the time and, of course, Gerry Marsden's 'You'll Never Walk Alone, which they adopted as their official anthem.
As televised football became more popular during the Sixties, the Kop found itself the star attraction on more than one occasion. In 1964, it was the subject of BBC Panorama documentary, while the same year, the first ever Match of the Day was broadcast against the backdrop of the swaying terrace. In 1968, the first colour 'Match of the Day' to be shown on our TV screens also featured the Kop.
The 1964/65 season saw the Kop witness continental competition for the first time and a memorable run in the European Cup culminated in a famous first leg semi-final victory over Inter Milan that is regarded by older Liverpudlians as the greatest night ever on the legendary terrace.
Fast forward 12 years and the next generation of Reds fans experienced what they believed to be the Kop's finest moment as St Etienne were dramatically beaten in the European Cup quarter-final.
The 1970s saw the Kop become a much more colourful place as various flags and banners, either home made or gathered while following the team across Europe, were fervently displayed with increasing regularity.
The growing menace of football hooliganism in the Seventies eventually resulted in perimeter fences being erected at the front of the Kop prior to the 1977/78 season.
The dawn of the 'football casual' era saw some Kopites shed the 'boot-boy/scarfer' image in favour of adidas Samba trainers and wedge haircuts, while in a bid to relieve the boredom of Liverpool's constant on-field success they migrated to the 'Anny' Road End in search of some off-field excitement.
The Kop has fallen silent on many occasions in its long and illustrious history but there have been few more poignant occasions than the one in 1981 when its inhabitants paid their respects to the late, great, Bill Shankly prior to the game against Swansea.
During the summer of 1987 a Victorian sewer collapsed under the Kop and delayed the eagerly anticipated debuts of new signings John Barnes and Peter Beardsley.
In the aftermath of the Hillsborough tragedy, the Kop became the centre-piece of what was an Anfield shrine to the 96 victims. The empty terrace had an eerie feel about it in the dark days following the disaster but was said to have never looked more beautiful.
In response to the above tragedy the fences were immediately removed from the front of the Kop and to comply with the Taylor Report, the terrace was finally demolished in 1994.
The last game in front of the standing Kop took place on 30 April 1994. Norwich City were the visitors and Jeremy Goss scored the only goal of the game but that failed to dampen the carnival atmosphere on what a highly emotional occasion.
The Kop has always been regarded as one of the most sporting football terraces and this was never more evident than on the last day of the 1988/89 season when Arsenal pipped Liverpool to the league title in dramatic fashion. Despite the obvious disappointment felt by Kopites, they generously stayed behind to applaud the victorious Gunners in scenes reminiscent of the time Leeds won the title at Anfield in the Sixties. Blackburn, in the Nineties, were also afforded similar hospitality upon being crowned champions in front of the Kop.
The last Liverpool player to score in front of the standing Kop was former Reds reserve Ashley Neal. The last first team player to do so was Julian Dicks, while the last fan was fez-wearing John Garner of Halewood.
An impressive new all-seater grandstand rose from the ashes of the demolished terrace and, in a bid to generate the raucous atmosphere of old, fans organised a succession of successful Flag night's and mosaics.
In 1999, the outside of the Kop was given a new look when the Paisley Gateway was unveiled in honour of Liverpool's most successful manager.
The most impressive occasion the new seated Kop has experienced is without doubt the night Chelsea were frightened into submission by a deafening wall of sound in the 2005 Champions League semi-final. The numbers may not have been has great as in the halcyon days of the Sixties and Seventies but even the old-timers among the crowd that night admitted the Kop had never been louder.
Happy 100th Birthday Spion Kop
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kopgone.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kopbuilt.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/LFC20-20This20is20Anfield21.jpg
Rafa speaks about the KOP
As Liverpool fans prepare to celebrate 100 years of The Kop this afternoon, manager Rafael Benitez has paid tribute to the most famous supporters in world football.
The Kopites will unveil a special mosaic just before kick-off against West Ham to mark the centenary celebration of an enclosure which holds no equal in the game.
Benitez may have only been on Merseyside for two years, but already he's more than aware how special the fans who cheer the team on relentlessly from the Kop are to the club.
He told Liverpoolfc.tv: "They are unbelievable and it's a great feeling to know they are always behind us. I have said before they are our twelfth man and that is definitely the case.
"I remember when I first heard them singing my name and it gave me a very special feeling. The players know the fans will always be with them and that is fantastic for the confidence.
"Many of them also travel away of course and even last week we saw and heard our fans in Kiev. It can be difficult to go to different countries but our fans always come with us wherever we are playing.
"I hope they can all help us pick up three important points against West Ham this afternoon."
Source: www.liverpoolfc.tv
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_1.jpghttp://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_4.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_5.jpghttp://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_6.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_7.jpghttp://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_8.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_10.jpghttp://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/76693565_b44605f726_o.jpg
Danniel Agger scores his first goal for the REDS in front of the KOP on its 100th Anniversary, & what a goal its was, deff going down in the books.
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/484898324.jpg
Video of the goal (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K513epasJZ0)
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/image043.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMGP4367-1.jpg
& thats thats the History of the KOP & its importance to South Africans :D
The weekend that just past, Anfeilds KOP celebrated its 100th anniversary
And little do we know, that the KOP actualy has alot of meaning to South Africans too! Heres a little history lesson :)
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/3907269.jpg
THE KOP
Kop or Spion Kop is the name for a number of stands at football stadiums in England and abroad, named after the South African mountain Spion Kop, scene of a battle in the Second Boer War where a majority of the Liverpool Regiment had died, hence Liverpool FC calling the home section of the ground the Spion Kop in 1906 in tribute.
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/spion-kop-view.jpg
The definition of what constitutes a Kop is subject to much conjecture. The size and location of the stand in the stadium varies, with most being located behind the goal and being occupied by its club's most vocal supporters. It is usually a single tiered stand and traditionally terraced, however modern stadium design has required many to be made all seated. It is not necessarily the largest stand in the stadium. For example the largest terrace to be used in English football was the East Bank at Charlton Athletic`s stadium 'The Valley' with a capacity of approximately 50,000 stretching along the side of the pitch. This stand was not known as a Kop. However Chesterfield's stadium the Recreation Ground has a Kop with a capacity of only a few thousand. Likewise, Newcastle's most vocal supporters are traditionally said to be in the Gallowgate End, despite it being the smallest stand in the stadium.
The first was at Woolwich Arsenal's Manor Ground[1] and many English grounds have a Kop. The most famous one is at Anfield, home of Liverpool, which is the only club to give their stand the official name of 'The Kop'. Built in 1906 and named 'Spion Kop', it could hold up to 24,000 rabid 'Kopites' (supporters placed in the Kop) however it was not the largest terrace built (behind a goal) at an English ground, that honour belongs to Villa Park's old Holte Endclosely followed by the old South Bank at Molineux, both regularly holding crowds in excess of 30,000. Hillsborough's kop had become the largest roofed terrace (at that time) in Europe, with a capacity of around 25,000. The funding for this work was not only done be the club itself but through the fans, who held a number of money making ventures including a fun run.
The supporters on Liverpool's Kop helped make Anfield famous for its atmosphere, supporters' enthusiasm, and making an intense and fiery match day atmosphere. The name sticks to this day both officially and spiritually, even though the stand itself became all-seater in the 1990s.
'Kopites' is also a collective name given to the loyal supporters of Liverpool Football club.
Source: wikipedia.org
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the world's most famous terrace and to celebrate, Liverpoolfc.tv takes a nostalgic trawl through the archives to recall the magical history of Anfield's Spion Kop...
With attendances at Anfield booming during the 1905/06 Championship-winning campaign, the Liverpool board, led by Chairman John Houlding and Secretary John McKenna, decided to demolish what was known as the Oakfield Road Embankment or Walton Breck Road End and replace it with a huge bank of rubble and cinders that was to become known as the Spion Kop.
The construction steel work for the new terrace was supplied and erected by Messrs E.F. Blakeley & Co of Vauxhall Ironworks. It consisted of 132 tiers of steps and could accommodate approximately 20,000 spectators.
It was the then Sports Editor of the Liverpool Daily Post & Echo, Ernest Edwards, who christened the newly constructed terrace the Spion Kop. It was named after the hill in South Africa where many young soldiers from Liverpool had lost their lives during the Boer War in 1900. On what date it officially became known as the Kop, remains unknown although it was sometime between 1906 and 1928.
The correct pronunciation is 'Spee-on Kop'.
Liverpool was not the first club to be able to boast a Kop - that honour is believed to belong to Woolwich Arsenal - but there's no doubting which one became the most famous.
The first game to be played in front of the Kop took place on September 1 1906. The city was basking in the midst of a heatwave and temperatures reached 94 degrees as Joe Hewitt netted the first goal.
In the Kemlyn Road corner of the Kop stands a flag-pole which was once the topmast of the Great Eastern ship. It had been broken up in Rock Ferry and floated across the Mersey to Liverpool where it was then hauled up Everton Valley by a team of four horses and put in place at Anfield.
Because the new Kop was an open terrace, the view from the back of the terrace was reportedly a sight to behold, especially in the summer when you could see for miles across the city. In the winter, however, it hardly made for comfortable viewing conditions as the wind and rain swept in from the Mersey.
In 1928, the Liverpool directors decided to reward the loyalty of those who stood on the Kop in all weathers by authorising the construction of a roof over the terrace. The cantilever roof measured 45,000 square foot. With a height of 125 feet and a slope measuring 425x131 feet, the Anfield Kop became the largest covered terrace in Europe.
The new roofed structure was officially opened by Football League President and former Anfield visionary John McKenna on August 25 and the Reds marked the occasion with a 3-0 defeat of Bury.
It was reported around this time that the Kop could accommodate up to 37,000 spectators but that figure was never made official and seemed highly unlikely. The Kop was regularly crammed to capacity but never more so than in 1952 when Anfield's all-time record attendance of 61,905 was set for a FA Cup fourth round tie against Wolves.
During the 1930s the Kop played host to various sporting events other than football. It was not uncommon for championship boxing bouts to be held at Anfield and in 1934 local favourite Nel Tarleton famously fought Freddie Miller for the World Featherweight title. Kopites were also treated to thrilling tennis contest between Fred Perry and Bill Tilden, while the Liverpool Marathon often concluded with a final lap in front of the imposing terrace.
It was not until the 1960s that singing became a popular pastime of those who stood on the Kop but, ignited by the passion of Bill Shankly, it quickly became renowned as the most vocal terrace in football. Kopites would belt out the hit Beatles records of the time and, of course, Gerry Marsden's 'You'll Never Walk Alone, which they adopted as their official anthem.
As televised football became more popular during the Sixties, the Kop found itself the star attraction on more than one occasion. In 1964, it was the subject of BBC Panorama documentary, while the same year, the first ever Match of the Day was broadcast against the backdrop of the swaying terrace. In 1968, the first colour 'Match of the Day' to be shown on our TV screens also featured the Kop.
The 1964/65 season saw the Kop witness continental competition for the first time and a memorable run in the European Cup culminated in a famous first leg semi-final victory over Inter Milan that is regarded by older Liverpudlians as the greatest night ever on the legendary terrace.
Fast forward 12 years and the next generation of Reds fans experienced what they believed to be the Kop's finest moment as St Etienne were dramatically beaten in the European Cup quarter-final.
The 1970s saw the Kop become a much more colourful place as various flags and banners, either home made or gathered while following the team across Europe, were fervently displayed with increasing regularity.
The growing menace of football hooliganism in the Seventies eventually resulted in perimeter fences being erected at the front of the Kop prior to the 1977/78 season.
The dawn of the 'football casual' era saw some Kopites shed the 'boot-boy/scarfer' image in favour of adidas Samba trainers and wedge haircuts, while in a bid to relieve the boredom of Liverpool's constant on-field success they migrated to the 'Anny' Road End in search of some off-field excitement.
The Kop has fallen silent on many occasions in its long and illustrious history but there have been few more poignant occasions than the one in 1981 when its inhabitants paid their respects to the late, great, Bill Shankly prior to the game against Swansea.
During the summer of 1987 a Victorian sewer collapsed under the Kop and delayed the eagerly anticipated debuts of new signings John Barnes and Peter Beardsley.
In the aftermath of the Hillsborough tragedy, the Kop became the centre-piece of what was an Anfield shrine to the 96 victims. The empty terrace had an eerie feel about it in the dark days following the disaster but was said to have never looked more beautiful.
In response to the above tragedy the fences were immediately removed from the front of the Kop and to comply with the Taylor Report, the terrace was finally demolished in 1994.
The last game in front of the standing Kop took place on 30 April 1994. Norwich City were the visitors and Jeremy Goss scored the only goal of the game but that failed to dampen the carnival atmosphere on what a highly emotional occasion.
The Kop has always been regarded as one of the most sporting football terraces and this was never more evident than on the last day of the 1988/89 season when Arsenal pipped Liverpool to the league title in dramatic fashion. Despite the obvious disappointment felt by Kopites, they generously stayed behind to applaud the victorious Gunners in scenes reminiscent of the time Leeds won the title at Anfield in the Sixties. Blackburn, in the Nineties, were also afforded similar hospitality upon being crowned champions in front of the Kop.
The last Liverpool player to score in front of the standing Kop was former Reds reserve Ashley Neal. The last first team player to do so was Julian Dicks, while the last fan was fez-wearing John Garner of Halewood.
An impressive new all-seater grandstand rose from the ashes of the demolished terrace and, in a bid to generate the raucous atmosphere of old, fans organised a succession of successful Flag night's and mosaics.
In 1999, the outside of the Kop was given a new look when the Paisley Gateway was unveiled in honour of Liverpool's most successful manager.
The most impressive occasion the new seated Kop has experienced is without doubt the night Chelsea were frightened into submission by a deafening wall of sound in the 2005 Champions League semi-final. The numbers may not have been has great as in the halcyon days of the Sixties and Seventies but even the old-timers among the crowd that night admitted the Kop had never been louder.
Happy 100th Birthday Spion Kop
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kopgone.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kopbuilt.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/LFC20-20This20is20Anfield21.jpg
Rafa speaks about the KOP
As Liverpool fans prepare to celebrate 100 years of The Kop this afternoon, manager Rafael Benitez has paid tribute to the most famous supporters in world football.
The Kopites will unveil a special mosaic just before kick-off against West Ham to mark the centenary celebration of an enclosure which holds no equal in the game.
Benitez may have only been on Merseyside for two years, but already he's more than aware how special the fans who cheer the team on relentlessly from the Kop are to the club.
He told Liverpoolfc.tv: "They are unbelievable and it's a great feeling to know they are always behind us. I have said before they are our twelfth man and that is definitely the case.
"I remember when I first heard them singing my name and it gave me a very special feeling. The players know the fans will always be with them and that is fantastic for the confidence.
"Many of them also travel away of course and even last week we saw and heard our fans in Kiev. It can be difficult to go to different countries but our fans always come with us wherever we are playing.
"I hope they can all help us pick up three important points against West Ham this afternoon."
Source: www.liverpoolfc.tv
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_1.jpghttp://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_4.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_5.jpghttp://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_6.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_7.jpghttp://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_8.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/kop_24aug_10.jpghttp://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/76693565_b44605f726_o.jpg
Danniel Agger scores his first goal for the REDS in front of the KOP on its 100th Anniversary, & what a goal its was, deff going down in the books.
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/484898324.jpg
Video of the goal (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K513epasJZ0)
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/image043.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMGP4367-1.jpg
& thats thats the History of the KOP & its importance to South Africans :D